The Kitten Project
by Scared-Like-Me
Summary: Kittens. They have to look after Kittens. For two weeks. So of course Mercedes was partnered with Sam. Sam- the same Sam that she had barely said a word to since she'd told him she broken up with Shane. Eventual Samcedes. AU after On My Way.
1. Chapter 1

I haven't posted anything on here in ages. This is so _strange_.

Anyway, before I start babbling or something, this is dedicated to _effinbullseye_ on Tumblr, who gave me this idea, and was kind enough to let me attempt to write it for her. I really hope this first chapter does your idea justice dear!

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee. I will never own Glee.

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><p>Chapter 1.<p>

"Mr. Schue," Kurt said, "What is in that box, and why is it moving?" He was staring at said box with an eyebrow raised and his mouth twisted into a grimace.

"I'm glad you asked, Kurt," Mr. Schue said, grinning in a way that made Mercedes immediately wary of whatever was going to happen next. "In this box is your assignment for the next two weeks."

Excited murmuring broke out in the group and Mercedes glanced at Kurt again, and he shrugged at her. She rolled her eyes, and mouthed, "He's crazy." Kurt just grinned.

"Alright, quiet down, guys." Mr. Schue, said, chuckling. "You will all be partnered up, and each pair will be given one of the things in the box, and you will have to look after them for two weeks- and don't worry, I've already called all of your parents to make sure it's okay with them."

"Why do we have to look after something, though?" Finn asked, his brow furrowing in confusion.

"Because a lot of you are graduating this year, and you still haven't really grasped the concept of responsibility. By participating in this week's assignment you'll be learning how to-" At this point Mercedes began to tune Mr. Schue out, because _really_?

_Basically_, Mercedes thought_, this was another one of those assignments that was supposed to have a life lesson behind it, but was really pretty pointless._ She sighed, rubbing the heel of her palm against her forehead.

There was a sudden rush of movement and Mercedes glanced about to see everyone partnering up. "Guys, guys!" Mr. Schue called over the ruckus, "We will be picking names from a hat for this, so sit back down please."

There was some grumbling, but everyone complied.

Quinn went first and picked Santana, who just nodded at the pairing and leaned closer to Brittany, who was smiling softly at her. Mike picked next, and got Joe, who had joined Glee about a week ago, and was fitting in just fine, they high fived, and Mr. Schue called Kurt to the front, where he picked Rory, who grinned at him and said, "Awesome."

Finn picked Sugar, who looked mildly frustrated at her partner, then Sam was called to the front and he opened the little piece of paper and smirked, "Mercedes." He said, winking at her. Her heart leapt in her chest and she had to fight back a grin; they hadn't spoken much since she'd told him she needed time to herself, and she wanted to be around him again, even if it ended up being a just friends relationship.

He took his seat, his hand brushing her shoulder as he walked past her, and she bit into her lower lip, and lowered her head to hide her smile.

Mercedes focused again, noting that Puck and Rachel were paired up, as were Brittany and Tina. "I guess that leaves us, Artie." Blaine said, and Artie raised his hand for a high five.

"Now that we've got our partners sorted out, I want you all to pick..." He trailed off and removed the lid from the box sitting in the centre of the room, "A kitten."

Mercedes let out a decidedly undignified squeak, and Tina grabbed her hand, squeezing it tightly. "A kitten." Tina whispered, elated.

Everyone rushed to the box excitedly, scrambling for a peek at them. Mercedes couldn't see past Finn, so she stood back, rocking on her heels, and biting her lip. She'd always wanted a kitten, but her mum had always told her 'no'.

Sam tapped her shoulder and Mercedes jumped. "I got us one!" He said, his eyes bright, cradling the tiny bundle of fur on his arms like a baby.

Mercedes peered down at it, and it blinked sleepily up at her, it's little paws swiping at the air and its tail flicking back and forth. Mercedes awwed and reached down to pet it, rubbing the grey fur between its ears, and cooing.

"It's a girl." Sam said, and Mercedes looked up at him.

"She's beautiful." Mercedes breathed.

"Just like her mum." Sam said, and Mercedes just smiled.

"Can I hold her?" Mercedes asked, and Sam nodded, handing her over gently.

"You're the cutest thing." She told her. "Sammy and I will name you soon, sweetie, okay?" She added, fighting back an squeal when a tiny pink tongue licked her hand.

Sam wrapped an arm around Mercedes' waist, and rested his chin on her shoulder so her could look down at her.

"I like the name Crook-"

"Sam." Mercedes interrupted. "We are not calling our kitten Crookshanks." She said, ignoring his pout. "Firstly, she'd a girl, secondly she's not even ginger, and lastly...I think Mittens suits her, because all of her paws are white, even though she's grey."

"Mittens?" Sam asked, and Mercedes nodded. "I like it."

"Hello, Mittens. We're going take good care of you." Sam told her, reaching around Mercedes to tickle Mittens' tummy.

"We'll have to go shopping for stuff after school," Mercedes said. "We'll have to go back mine to get my car, because Santana was my ride this morning."

"That's fine." Sam said, meeting her eyes and squeezing his arms around her.

Their moment was interrupted by an excited Rachel running up to them with her own kitten cradled in her arms. He was black and white, and fluffy, and very much asleep. "Noah and I have names him Fluffy." Rachel grinned.

"You named him Fluffy." Puck grumbled from the other side of the room, and Sam laughed.

"That's beside the point," Rachel huffed, "Isn't he the cutest thing ever?" She asked, her doe eyes softening as the focused on the sleeping kitten.

Mercedes laughed, and shook her head, knowing Rachel was too wrapped up in Fluffy to really pay attention to Sam and Mercedes' responses.

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><p>By the end of Glee everyone had spread out around the choir room floor, all playing with their kittens, or fawning over the other kittens.<p>

Mercedes had been cooing at Cordelia, Kurt and Rory's kitten, who had the brightest green eyes, and shiny brown fur that she seemed to take great pride in, for a few minutes now, and though that she might be her favourite, apart from mittens.

Tigger, ginger and playful, but clumsy, was curled up on Artie's lap; Lady, a tabby, was sitting between Quinn and Santana and staring beadily from one to the other; Sylvester, 'like Sylvester and Tweetie Pie' Brittany had exclaimed, was being tickled by Tina; Bubbles, was having her brown ears rubbed by Sugar, while Finn fretted over how he was going to look after a cat, he didn't even like cats; and little Ollie was curled up, asleep, on top of Mike's schoolbag.

Mercedes scratched Cordelia one last time before making her way over to Sam.

"Are you ready to go?" She asked.

"Yeah," Sam replied quietly, his eyes trained on Mittens, "She's getting tired, and we'll need to feed her soon, though."

"So we'll drop her off with my mum until we get everything we need- I'm sure Santana won't mind giving you a ride to my house." Mercedes told him, and her nodded, standing carefully, so as not to jostle the sleeping kitten.

Santana agreed to give Sam a lift without too much snark, and the four of them filed out of the choir room, Mercedes only just remembering to grab a sheet with the list of necessities for taking care of Mittens on it in time, before being ushered outside and into Santana's car.

"Where's Lady?" Sam asked, buckling himself into the back seat.

"Q took her home- my parents won't allow me to have a cat in the house, and Lady likes her better anyway." Santana said, shrugging as she started the ignition.

After that the drive was relatively silent, and Mercedes hummed quietly along to the radio, staring out the window and watching everything pass by. She caught a brief glimpse of Sam in the wing mirror, of the serene smile on his lips, and those eyes that she loved so much.

Maybe..._maybe_ things could work out between them. She hoped so- she'd spent too much time denying her feelings, and feeling guilty, and then trying to force the feelings away that when she'd finally come to terms with them and felt ready to do something about them she was afraid it was too late, but Sam still looked at her the way he had before, and maybe that meant something.

Mercedes thanked Santana, and climbed out of the car, missing the wink Santana shot her. Sam appeared beside her, and jerked his head in the direction of her house. She nodded and they walked up the path together, and Mercedes wondered that is she just reached out and took his hand in hers would he pull away? Or would he entwine them like he had so many times before? Would he move closer, and smile down at her? Maybe bump their shoulders together?

She shook those thoughts away and opened the front door, calling out to let her mum know she was home.

"'Cedes." Her mum said, peering around the kitchen door frame. "And Sam!" She exclaimed, a grin lighting her face. She moved into the hall and took one of Sam's hands. "I haven't seen you in ages, dear, how are you?" She asked.

Mercedes watched as they interacted, Sam smooth and charming, and her mum happy and bubbly, and questioning.

Before Maria could start into any potentially awkward conversations Mercedes cut in, "Mum, will you look after Mittens for us?"

"Mittens?" Mum asked, her eyebrow raised, her mouth twisted in confusion.

"Our kitten." Mercedes replied.

"Oh!" Maria said, "Where is she?"

"I thought you didn't like cats, mum." Mercedes said, confused.

"Yes, but this one is just for a few weeks, 'Cedes, not forever." Maria said, as though that made perfect sense. "Oh," She gasped as Mittens peered blearily around Sam's arm, "She's adorable, sweetheart."

"Well then you can look after her while Sam and I get the stuff we need, right?" Mercedes said, gesturing for Sam to hand the kitten over.

As soon as Maria had Mittens in her arms she wandered off, cooing to her. "We'll be fine until you get back, kids." Maria called, and Mercedes couldn't help but laugh.

"Everyone's enamoured by her." Sam murmured, and Mercedes couldn't agree more.

"Can she stay here?" Sam asked, "I mean I'll do my part, but the Hummel's will have two other kittens in their house...I'll come over and help out, I promise-"

"That's fine, Sammy." Mercedes laughed, "Now quit your rambling and let's get going. If we get this done fast enough we can be back in time for dinner."

"Spaghetti night?" Sam asked hopefully.

"Yep."

"I love your mum." Mercedes raised an eyebrow and he just shrugged.

"What? It's true.

"Alright crazy boy, let's go." Mercedes half-laughed, grabbing her car keys from the table by the front door.

Sam opened the door for her, and gestured for her to go first, bowing a little at the waist. Mercedes felt his eyes on her as she walked past, and that maybe was looking a lot more likely.

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><p>Okay, okay that was nervewracking! Let me know what you think guys.<p>

Love and hugs,

Coral.


	2. Chapter 2

Firstly, I just want to thank you all for the response this has gotten. It's amazing, and I love everyone who read, or favourited or reviewed or put this story on alert. Thank you. So much.

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee. I will never own Glee.

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><p>Chapter 2.<p>

"Sam, Mittens does not need a plushy." Mercedes sighed, exasperated, and just a little amused at his child-like behaviour; this was the fifth or sixth time he'd found something he simply _had_ to get for Mittens that wasn't actually necessary, and now Mercedes had to put her foot down- Mittens wasn't going to be with them for that long, and they were running on a budget for her supplies.

He pouted and held up the teddy bear to his face, wrapping his arms around it defiantly. "But, Mercy..." He whined. "She needs to have something to remind her of me when I can't be there- so she can remember that her daddy loves her."

Mercedes pressed her lips together in an attempt to hide her smile, and rolled her eyes fondly. "No, Sam." She said, trying to be strict. "We are not going to spoil her."

Sam huffed, "No buts. Put the teddy back and meet me out the front, okay? I need to go and pay for this stuff." Sam nodded dejectedly, turning away from her to put it back, his slumped shoulders causing a pang of guilt to run through her.

The line, luckily, wasn't too long, and Mercedes' purchases had been rung up quickly and without any bother. She slipped the bags into her hands and thanked the cashier, heading towards the door, keeping an eye out for Sam.

She stood outside the doors, her eyes scanning the area, her brow furrowed in confusion. Where _was_ he?

"I'll take those." Sam's voice said by her ear, making her jump. Then the weight of the bags had been removed from her hands, and Sam was grinning down at her.

"You scared me." Mercedes gasped out, "Don't _do_ that!"

"Sorry," Sam chuckled, quite obviously not sorry. "Ready to go? I want some of that spaghetti, like, now. I'm starving."

"Fine," Mercedes grumbled half-heartedly, heading in the direction of the car park.

Sam put the bags in the back seat of the car, and Mercedes shooed him out of the way so that she could double check that they'd gotten everything they needed, even though Sam was muttering some nonsense about it 'not being necessary' with a decidedly uneasy grin on his face.

It wasn't long before she found out why, either, because sitting in an extra bag was the teddy bear.

"Sam." She groaned, and his smiled turned sheepish.

"I'm-"

"No, you're not. Just…get in the car, Sam." Mercedes sighed. At this rate they were going to have the most spoiled kitten in all ofOhio.

When they were on the road, and Mercedes had time to sort herself out, Sam mumbled an apology again.

"It's fine." Mercedes said, sighing heavily, relaxing and realising that it really wasn't that big of a deal. "God help your future children, Sam Evans. They'll be spoiled like no others."

"Nah," Sam said, winking at her, "You'll be there to stop me from spoiling the kids too much." Mercedes just about choked on her own spit as the implications of that sentence sunk in.

"I…" She coughed, but didn't try to finish her sentence, because what did you say to something like that? Especially when the thought was one that wanted to wriggle its way into her heart and stay rooted there until it was a reality? Sam and Mercedes. Together. With kids. Kids that were _theirs_.

"Too much?" Sam asked, and Mercedes glanced over at him for a second, seeing the forced smile on his face.

Mercedes just shook her head, and Sam's eyes softened, seeming to understand that right now just wasn't the time. "Okay." He murmured, and Mercedes felt extremely grateful that Sam had somehow always been able to pick up on how she was feeling.

He didn't say anything else for the rest of the trip, instead he switched on the radio, and the awkwardness that had been palpable eventually dissipated, leaving comfort in its place.

Mercedes took the bags straight up to her room, the scent of spaghetti wafting from the kitchen making her stomach grumble. She hadn't realised how hungry she was.

She dropped them off at the foot of her bed, and turned to leave, but bumped into Sam's chest. "What?" She asked, staring up at him. He didn't answer, so she followed his line of sight and an 'aww' left her mouth before she could even think of stopping it.

Mittens was curled up in the middle of a pile of Mercedes' pillows, her head resting on her tiny paws, and her whiskers twitching in her sleep, her pink tongue poking out from her mouth.

"She's adorable." Mercedes declared quietly, glancing up at Sam to see him nodding in agreement.

"How about we go get some of that spaghetti your mum made, and then we can feed her?" Sam suggested.

Mercedes took one last look at the bed before shutting the door quietly, and following Sam downstairs.

He was setting the table when she walked into the kitchen, talking with Maria, as he manoeuvred around the mahogany table. "Dinner will be ready in a few, hon." Maria told her with a gesture towards the cooker.

Mercedes went to help Sam out, but he said "I've got it." when she tried, so she huffed at him, feeling useless just standing there.

She took her seat, hating not doing anything, but knowing that if she tried to help her mum her hand would get whacked with the nearest utensil. Her mum was kind of a perfectionist when it came to food, and therefore no one even tried to offer assistance anymore.

She crossed her arms on top of the table and rested her head on them, glaring at the gleaming fork by her left elbow.

Dinner was full of talking and laughter, and bad jokes that made Mercedes laugh anyway. Rose, her hair braided and her t-shirt proudly displaying Spongebob Squarepants, looked at Sam with big round eyes like she always had, and little Jacob, with his shy smile and tiny frame, came out of his shell enough to talk a little.

It was like nothing had changed since he left; they were all still so at ease together, and Mercedes couldn't help but sneak glances at Sam, knowing that she had a goofy grin on her face, but not caring, because it had been so long since he'd been over and this still felt right.

When they were clearing the table Sam caught her gaze, and smirked. Mercedes heart pounded and her stomach dropped, a blush rushing to her cheeks as she shuffled over to the sink.

"You two go and check on Mittens," Maria instructed, shooing them away, "I'll do the dishes tonight."

"Mum-" Mercedes protested, feeling horrible. She hadn't helped with dinner, and now she wasn't doing the washing up, like she did every night.

"Go on." Maria encouraged, smiling.

Mercedes nodded, and went upstairs, Sam trailing behind her. "Don't worry so much, Mercy. We both know that if your mum minded she wouldn't have let us come up here without doing the dishes."

He was right, of course, but that didn't stop the niggling guilt. "Come on, we've got a little one to take care of." Sam said, tilting his head towards the bed, where a soft mewling noise sounded.

Sam bit back a grin, and Mercedes huffed out a laugh and gestured for him to go on. "I'll sort her stuff out." Mercedes told him as he climbed onto the bed, and started petting Mitten, cooing softly to her.

Mercedes set up the basket they'd bought for Mittens, smoothing out the cream blanket, and setting everything that had to be brought downstairs into one bag. Once she was finished she stood, dusting off her jeans.

She took the handles of the bag and carried it downstairs, putting everything away, and told her mum where she'd put everything before going back up to her room.

She took a moment to stare at them from her bedroom door; Sam lying back on her bed with Mittens standing on his stomach, her legs wobbling slightly. He was petting her gently, and she was leaning into his touch; Mercedes heart expanded at the sight. She wished she had a camera on her, because that moment was one she never wanted to forget.

Mercedes grabbed the teddy bear and knelt at the side of the bed, setting the teddy on top of the covers and wrapping her arms around it. There was a sudden dip on the bed, and she looked up to see Sam grinning down at her, a slowly blinking Mittens clutched to his chest.

"Hi." She whispered.

"Hey." Sam replied.

"How is she?" Mercedes asked, eyes trained on Mittens, who was extending a paw tentatively towards the teddy, and quickly retracting it before she could touch it.

"We'll need to feed her soon. Just some milk and maybe a little kitten food." Sam said, one finger stroking over Mittens' ears.

"It's all over there, want me to grab it?" Sam nodded in response, and Mercedes let go of the teddy so she could grab what they needed.

"Can I?" Sam asked when Mercedes sat beside him, and Mercedes agreed, because she'd have plenty of opportunities to feed and cuddle Mittens because she was staying here.

They sat pressed together, and Mittens drank her milk and chewed her food, her tail twitching back and forth. At one point Sam leaned against her, an arm snaking around her waist.

Mercedes thought about protesting, about telling him no, because it had become habit by this point, but she realised that she didn't want to. She didn't want to let the guilt she felt for cheating on Shane take over her life, and she didn't want to keep pushing Sam away because all it was doing was hurting both of them.

So she relaxed and snuggled closer to him, and rubbed in between Mittens' ears gently with one hand, as she padded over Sam's lap and yawned, her mouth stretching wide and her tongue lolling out.

"She _can't_ be tired already." Sam murmured, incredulous.

"She's only a baby, Sam. She needs her rest." Mercedes countered.

Sam grumbled but said that Mercedes was probably right. "What are we going to do while we're at school, Mercedes? We can't just leave her here." Sam wondered, and Mercedes teeth dug into her lower lip as she pondered the question.

"I know it sounds ridiculous, but do you think we could take her to school?" Mercedes asked, and Sam hummed, his nose scrunching up.

"It's worth a shot." Sam said, scratching his chin, "If it doesn't work out tomorrow, then we can try and work something else out over the weekend."

"Sounds good." Mercedes said, letting out a yawn of her own.

"Sleepy?" Sam asked, an amused smile quirking the corners of his lips.

"A little." Mercedes conceded.

"I should go then." Sam said, lifting Mittens out of his lap and laying her gently back onto her cocoon of pillows.

"I walk you out." Mercedes said, standing up and fighting back another yawn.

At the door Sam hugged her tightly, his hands clasped at the small of her back, and his face nuzzled into the crook of her neck. Mercedes snaked her arms around his shoulders, her nose pressing against his chest.

"See you tomorrow." He murmured, and then he was gone.

Mercedes clambered into bed, having put Mittens into her basket, and gotten ready for bed. She took one last look at Mittens and reached over to switch off her bed-side lamp.

She snuggled under her blankets and curled onto her side, her only thoughts of sleep, and how grateful she was that her one homework assignment wasn't due in until Tuesday because she'd completely forgotten about it.

She shut her eyes, buried her face into her pillow, and tried to get to sleep.

After a few minutes of tossing a turning there was a soft meow from her left, and Mercedes' eyes snapped open. She peered over the edge of her bed, and saw Mittens sitting down and staring up at the bed, making soft little noises, her whiskers drooping.

Mercedes' heart melted at the sight, and she scooped Mittens into her hands and set her on the bed beside Mercedes, watching as she got used to wobbling about on the bed again before curling up at Mercedes side, her tail extending over Mercedes' thigh and her nose pressed against Mercedes' hip.

"Night little one." Mercedes said. She rested her head back on her pillow, ran a hand down Mittens' spine and let her eyes flutter shut, a small smile on her face as she drifted into a peaceful sleep.

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><p>Still nervewracking, but I hope you guys liked it.<p>

Love and hugs,

Coral.


	3. Chapter 3

You guys give me life, honestly. I'm so grateful for everyone who even just thought about reading this fic. It means the world.

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee. I will never own Glee.

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><p>Chapter 3.<p>

Mercedes had woken that morning to a tiny fluff ball curled up on her stomach, and she'd had a tough time moving Mittens, simply because she was so cute that Mercedes hated to disturb her.

She took Mittens to school, cradled in her arms, and was intercepted by Puck and Fluffy, who looked disgruntled at being carried about and was wriggling in Puck's arms.

"Mr. Schue says we have to leave them in the choir room. He set up a pen, or something for them."

Mercedes nodded, idly scratching behind Mittens' ears as they headed for the choir room. "Are they going to be left alone all day?" Mercedes asked, worried now. She didn't like the idea of leaving Mittens without someone to look after her.

"Naw. Ms. P is supposed to check in on them throughout the day. Feed them and stuff." Puck replied, shifting Fluffy in his arms, and hissing when he took a swipe at Puck's arm.

Mercedes would have laughed if she wasn't still so worried about Mittens. "Ms. Pillsbury?" Mercedes asked, biting her lower lip, "It she going to be okay dealing with so many kittens?"

Puck gestured for her to go into the choir room first, and shrugged in answer to her question. "Mr. Schue said she's alright with it."

Mercedes nodded, knowing she'd just have to put her doubts out of her head and trust her teachers. Mr. Schue met them, smiling, and directed them to the pen.

Mercedes snuggled Mittens close before setting her down and watching her pad about the floor, sniffing. Fluffy joined her and the two nosed at each other, curious but hesitant.

"Tell Ms. Pillsbury thank you, Mr. Schue." Mercedes said, and he nodded, his eyes crinkling.

"Get to registration you two, and you can check in on them later." Mr. Schue instructed, looking far too amused at their reluctance to leave their kittens.

Puck grumbled, but nodded, heading for the door. Mercedes followed, not too happy either. It was strange how quickly she'd become attached to Mittens, how protective of her Mercedes felt, she mused as she took her seat in her registration class.

At least she wasn't the only one who felt that way.

Mercedes didn't see Sam until lunch time, at which point he ran up to her, eyes wide and looking concerned. "Where is she?" He asked.

"Mittens is with Ms. Pillsbury, Sam." Mercedes said, raising an eyebrow at him as he deflated, looking relieved "Go get your lunch and then we can go and see her, okay?"

"Yeah, okay." Sam said, "I'll be right back."

Mercedes watched him leave, amused. She speared some of her pasta and ate it, shaking her head. He was mad as a hatter, that one, she thought fondly.

He slid in beside her a few minutes later, tray hitting the table with a dull thud and he proceeded to shovel his food into his mouth as fast as he could. Mercedes watched him with a sick sort of fascination, no longer wanting to finish her own lunch.

"Hungry?" She asked sarcastiacally.

"WnfeMifnsse." Mercedes couldn't make that out, and decided against asking him to repeat himself while he was still stuffing his face.

When he was finished, though, he stood and headed for the door, glancing back to Mercedes briefly, and gesturing for her to follow him.

She stood, grabbing both of their trays and leaving them up, before going after him.

When she reached the choir room he was already sitting on the floor by the pen with Mittens securely in his arms, talking quietly to her. Her heart felt light at fuzzy at the sight of them and she knelt by him, looking down at Mittens, who was flexing her paw against Sam's thigh.

Some of the others were lazing about; Rory was tickling Cordelia, and Tina and Brittany were rolling a ball of wool between them watching Sylvester make tiny kitten jumps after it, her paws flailing after it. Kurt and Quinn were talking animatedly, with Lady sitting between them and looking awfully disdainful for a cat.

The other kittens were sleeping in the pen, Tigger and Bubbles curled up together, and Ollie lying sprawled out by himself near a water bowl.

"I take it you missed her?"

"Yeah," Sam replied, smiling sheepishly, "Did she behave last night?"

"She did. She curled up beside me and when I woke up she was lying on my tummy."

"I bet that was an adorable sight." Sam said, nudging her side with his elbow.

"She is pretty cute." Mercedes agreed with a tiny smirk.

"Don't even, Mercy. You know I was talking about you." Mercedes laughed, making Mittens jump and stare up at Mercedes.

"Hey, Mittens." Mercedes said, stroking her ear. Mittens' eyes shut lazily and she purred quietly. Sam smiled at them, his eyes warm and adoring.

"I can't come over this afternoon." Sam said, after a few minutes of comfortable silence. "But I'll be over later, though, so don't worry."

"Why?" Mercedes asked, fighting off a frown and concentrating on Mittens' moving tail.

"It's my turn to help Mrs. Hummel with dinner tonight, and I can't skip out." Sam explained. "I'm sorry."

"No. Don't be silly, Sam, it's fine" Mercedes told him, her free hand grasping his upper arm, "Come over and visit whenever you can, okay?" He nodded.

"I will. I won't leave you to look after her by yourself, Mercy." Sam mumbled.

"It's fine." Mercedes said, "I'll give you some time to be with her now, and I'll see you in English." Mercedes said, petting Mittens one last time and standing.

"Thank you." Mercedes just smiled knowingly at him and left, stopping by her locker to grab her textbook.

She sat down just before the second bell went, and waved at Tina, who was removing her books from her messenger bag, and appeared to be struggling to do so. Mercedes giggled and Tina stuck her tongue out at her, huffing a little when she couldn't get what she needed out. Mercedes bit her lower lip and turned away, waiting for Mrs. Garcia to arrive.

Mercedes slammed the front door closed and set Mittens down, allowing her to pad about while she grabbed a drink. Mercedes took her water up the stairs and switched her laptop on, dropping her bag onto the floor and sighing.

She'd received and ungodly amount of homework for over the weekend, and she was completely exhausted just thinking about it.

She set her water onto the bed, and headed back downstairs, jumping when a tiny yelp reached her ears. She looked down and Saw mittens cowering into the crook of a step, seemingly frozen. Mercedes sat down on a step, reaching for Mittens tentatively.

Mittens entire body was shaking as Mercedes pulled her into her arms. She slid down the stairs on her butt and stood carefully, shushing and petting Mittens. Mercedes heart was beating out of her chest with worry as she sat on the sofa, running her fingers over Mitten's ears and down her spine, handling her gently.

The poor thing had tried to follow Mercedes up the stairs and had gotten stuck, and God why was Mercedes so stupid? She shouldn't have left her down here by herself in the first place. She sighed, and stopped internally admonishing herself and concentrated on calming Mittens down.

After a few minutes Mittens stopped shaking, though Mercedes could feel her too fast heart beating through her ribcage. Mercedes sighed again, and nuzzled her nose into Mittens' fur, holding her close until she was calm and purring, stretching out and her eyelids drooping.

Mittens soon fell asleep, and Mercedes took her upstairs and put her into her basket so Mercedes could check her email, and relax for a little while.

During dinner Mercedes phone beeped, and she was just about to open the message with Sam's name on it when her dad told her to put her phone away while she was at the table.

She spent the rest of dinner spaced out, wondering what he wanted, not noticing the odd looks her parents were giving her. She collected the plates in a daze, scraping them and dumping them into the sink, wondering if she just texted back before she washed them…

She knew it was a bad idea, because one text would lead to twenty others, and she'd be standing by the sink an hour from now, with nothing done.

She sighed and rolled up the sleeves of her jumper and filled the sink with hot, soapy water, allowing the warmth of the water to relax her. She hummed to her herself as she washed.

It was a good half hour later before she was finished, and then she wrestled her phone out of her pocket, wandering into the sitting room.

_I can't come over tonight at all. Sorry, Mercy. : (_

She frowned and sat down beside Jacob, wondering _why_, and then reminding herself that he didn't really owe her an explanation. She quickly typed out an 'okay' and set her phone down on the arm of the sofa, grabbing a cushion and wrapping an arm around it, as had become her habit.

Jacob peered up at her, his wide eyes worried. He tugged on the sleeve of her jumper and whispered, "Are you alright, 'Cedes?" She smiled at him, pushing away her disappointment.

"I'm fine, Jay." She said, snaking her free arm around his thin shoulders and holding him close. "How are you?"

He shrugged, and didn't reply. He wasn't a talkative boy, but his hand on her knee and his head on her shoulder gave her enough comfort and reassurance about his feelings that she understood that sometimes words weren't really necessary.

She directed her eyes to the TV, which was have a re-run marathon of some cop show that her dad loved, and she watched it, only half paying attention.

During a break Jacob shifted and mumbled, "I like the kitten."

"Yeah?" Mercedes asked quietly.

He nodded against her shoulder, "She's fluffy and nice."

"I'm glad," She told him, a small smile working its way onto her lips. "Were you playing with her earlier?"

"Yeah, mum's got her on her lap now." Jacob said through a yawn.

Mercedes glanced over to see Mittens lying across Maria's lap, and huffed a laugh. "She's got all of us wrapped around her paws." Mercedes said.

Jacob didn't say anything to that, and she looked down to see him passed out, his breathing deep and even and his eyes flickering under his lids. She smiled and pushed his fringe out of his eyes.

"Dad?" She said, and he grunted, "Jacob's sleeping." The sofa shifted a little and then Robert was leaning over them, shaking Jacob gently.

Jacob's eyes fluttered open, and his brows furrowed together, "Up you get kiddo," Robert coaxed. "You've fallen asleep on 'Cedes." Jacob nodded, blinking sleepily and stumbling to his feet.

Robert helped him up to bed, talking softly to his only son, and then saying, louder, "You too, Rosie." The girl in question grumbled to herself, but followed them upstairs, her ponytail swishing back and forth as she walked away.

"Is she behaving?" Mercedes joked, shooting a pointed look at Mittens.

"She's a heck of a lot better than any of my own kids ever were." Maria replied, grinning wickedly.

Mercedes huffed indignantly, and walked over to scoop Mittens out of her mum's lap. "Come on, baby, away from the mean old lady." Mercedes cooed, cuddling Mittens to her chest, eliciting a laugh from Maria.

"Well, this mean old lady is going to switch the channel before your daddy gets back downstairs." Maria said, grabbing the remote and flicking through the channels, settling on a movie that Mercedes had never seen before.

She shrugged and sank back into the sofa, letting Mittens curl up across her upper thighs and stomach. Mittens let out a tiny _meow_, and Mercedes awed, booping Mittens' nose and watching her blink, confusedly.

"Is Sam not coming over, 'Cedes?" Robert asked, walking back into the sitting room and flopping down beside her.

Mercedes shook her head, "No, he can't make it tonight." Her dad shrugged and he reached out to pet Mittens absentmindedly.

"Well then, we can have a family movie night, right?" Robert asked, grinning up at her and winking.

"Sounds awesome, dad." She said, and Mittens let out a particularly loud purr.

"So we're all in agreement then," Robert said, laughing.

Maria picked out a couple of movies, most of them ones that they'd all seen before, and slotted one into the DVD player.

"Really, mum?" Mercedes asked as Maria slid in between her husband and her daughter.

"Yes, it's a favourite of mine." She replied, wrapping an arm around her husband.

"Urgh, fine." Mercedes agreed, letting Maria take her hand and squeeze it. "I get to pick the next one, though." Both her parents agreed to that, and they all settled down to watch _Transformers_.

Mercedes didn't get to pick out a second movie, though, because she fell asleep with her head in her mum's lap about half way through the first.

The rest of the weekend passed pretty quickly, and there was no word of Sam at all. Mercedes decided, at lunch time on Sunday, not to let it bother her and then decided to get stuck into her homework, before she procrastinated all her time away.

She left some treats by Mitten's basket, and pulled her books out of her bag, settling onto her bed, ready to stick it out for the long haul.

She agonised over Chemistry, staring at a lot of the questions in confusion before finally working out the answers, and she worked swiftly through her Geography work, and then switched her laptop on so that she could get started on her English essay.

She opened her iTunes and a Microsoft word document. Spreading her notes out around her, and rifling through loose sheets until she found the one she'd scribbled the essay title onto.

She was about half way through the first draft when she took a break. She drank some water and lay back on her bed and rubbed at her eyes, idly wondering if she could, maybe, take a small nap. Just for half an hour.

She woke up to muffled laughter and meowing in her ear. She groaned and turned over, her eyes blinded by the sudden light. "Mittens?" She mumbled, squinting in the direction of the noises. A cold nose nudged against her cheek and she yelped, jerking back, while a loud laughed boomed.

"Sam?" She asked, even more confused than before. "What?"

"You're adorable, Mercy." He choked out, clambering onto the bed bedside her and picking Mittens up. "Yes, your mummy is adorable, isn't she?" He cooed, pressing a kiss to her fur.

Mercedes smiled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and sitting up.

"When did you get here?" She asked Sam, piling her notes up and setting them to the side so that there was room for both of them on the bed.

"Only about ten minutes ago. I was talking to Rose for a bit." He admitted, "She's got quite the imagination, that one."

Mercedes nodded, "That she does." Mercedes agreed. "Is there anything specific you're here for, or?"

"I had to come and see my two favourite girls." Sam told her, bumping their shoulders together, and keeping the contact.

"Well we're very happy to see you, Sam." Mercedes said, rolling her eyes.

"Who said I was talking about you? I'm here for your mum and her food." Sam said, trying to keep a straight face.

"Uh-huh." Mercedes said, taking Mittens from him and setting her on the floor. "You can go downstairs and talk to her then."

Sam pouted, "Oh, come on, you know I was joking." He whined as Mercedes got up from the bed and started packing up the books she'd finished with. "Mercy you know I meant you."

"I know, you goof," Mercedes said, "Now go clean out Mittens' litter box."

Sam groaned, "Sure, give me the dirty job."

"Sam." Mercedes said.

"Fine, fine. That's so gross." Sam mumbled, and Mercedes bit her lip to hold back a giggle.

Mercedes laid back on her bed, watching Mittens pad over the quilt and sniff about for a few minutes.

"I'm going to put this in the bin." Sam said, and Mercedes let out a quiet 'hmm' and patted the bed by her arm, making Mittens look over. Mittens cocked her head to the side, her whiskers twitching, and then moved over beside Mercedes slowly, her paw swiping out to prod at Mercedes arm.

Mercedes smiled, and tapped her fingers against the mattress repeatedly. Mittens watched the movement with sharp eyes, she lowered onto her tummy and her eyes narrowed, her tail swishing back and forth. After a minute of intense concentration Mittens pounced, her paws wrapping around Mercedes hand harmlessly, Mittens' tiny teeth digging into Mercedes fingers gently.

Mercedes laughed lightly and pulled Mittens off her hand, and cuddled her to her chest, petting between her ears. "You're the most precious thing." She murmured, and Mittens' just purred as though in agreement.

"Like I said," Sam cut in out of nowhere, lying down beside them, "Adorable." He took Mercedes free hand, staring at her, making sure it was okay, and when she didn't protest he entwined their fingers.

"I missed this," He murmured, "I missed _you_."

She met his gaze, a sudden feeling of contentedness filling her chest, "I missed you too." She admitted.

Sam's smile turned unsure and he raised their joined hands to his lips, keeping eye contact with Mercedes all the while.

Mercedes didn't know what to do now, didn't know where tog go from this point, because they could be together now, it would be so easy to fall back into what they had, with the few minor changes that had affected them since they'd broken up, it would be natural.

And she was so irrationally afraid.

Sam could sense it, because he laid their hands down between their bodies and scooted closer to her. "It's going to work out," He whispered, "We can work for this together." He promised, squeezing her hand tight. Mercedes squeezed right back.

"I'm scared." She admitted. What if she just thought she was ready for a relationship again? What if she was deluding herself and ended up hurting someone- hurting Sam?

"So am I," He said, "But we've got each other, and I know we can do this. I believe in us, if I didn't I would never have fought for you."

"Okay." Mercedes said, letting out a long breath.

"Yeah?" Sam asked, a small smile creeping onto his face.

"Yeah." Mercedes said, and he pulled her into his arms, hooking his chin over her shoulder and letting her press her face into the crook of his neck.

Mercedes took a few shuddering breaths, and relaxed into his embrace, and giggling as Mittens squirmed out from between them and pranced away.

* * *

><p>Well...I'm just going to leave this here, and hope you liked it.<p>

Love and hugs,

Coral.


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